For hundreds of years, Coffee was grown “organically,” without synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, or herbicides, and creating a rich and biodiverse ecosystem. A few decades ago, this changed. Synthetic inputs led to booming production, but the cost to the soil, water, and a warming planet have been paid most steeply by the farming communities.

Date: Tuesday 11 November 2014Time: 12.30-14.00Location: D-19, Palais des Nations, Geneva, SwitzerlandSpeaker: Guy Standing, Professor of Development at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London and former Director of the Socio-Economic Security Programme of the International Labour Organization

2015 is the 800th anniversary of the Magna Carta: The first attempt to limit the powers of the King of England by law and protect the rights of his subjects, in a document imposed on him by those very subjects.

Last week, I sat down for a quick chat with the director of the National Domestic Workers Alliance, Ai-jen Poo, and had a great conversation about what a 21st century social-safety net should look like.

And for both of us, it was about how our grandmothers inspired us to explore different ways of bringing people together to create positive change.

The brave women of Kobani - where Syrian Kurds are desperately fighting ISIS/ISIL/Daesh - are about to be betrayed by the "international community". These women warriors, apart from Caliph Ibrahim's goons, are also fighting treacherous agendas by the US, Turkey and the administration of Iraqi Kurdistan. So what's the real deal in Kobani?

How do commons principles apply in the production of goods and services?

Enclosures of natural and human resources like land or knowledge are the subject of resistance from movements for community land rights, anti copyright and defence of the open internet. But what about the commons at work?